Advantage West Midlands

Christopher Pincher: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills how many people are employed by Advantage West Midlands; how many people compose the non-executive Board of Advantage West Midlands; and what the total cost to the public purse of payments to  (a) employees and  (b) Board members is to date.

Mark Prisk: The following tables show:
	
		
			  (a) Number of and cost of employees 
			   Number/£ 
			 Number of employees headcount (full-time equivalent (322)) 346 
			 Cost (£) 18,358,000 
		
	
	Staff numbers are as at the snapshot reference date 31 March 2010 and cost is for the financial year 2009-10. Costs for payroll employees are defined as pay bill i.e. salary, ERNICs and pension; and
	
		
			  (b) Number of and cost of board members 
			   Number/£ 
			 Number of board members (including chair) 15 
			 Cost (£) 231,412 
		
	
	Board member costs are from the 2008-09 financial year and include chair pension costs and board travel expenses. Board members now receive a remuneration of £8,666 per annum for minimum of two days per month with no pension entitlement.
	The chair receives a remuneration of £81,718 per annum for three days a month and receives a pension.
	Under the RDA Act 1998 an RDA board must have 15 members with the majority being business positions.